Much Ado
by Youkai-ChoGonou
Summary: Not much action, but when Magnus runs to Tesla's aid and things don't go quite as planned, it's hard to determine who is saving whom... or who really needed saving in the first place.


**AN: This was written per request as a slight Tesla/Helen fic. But I think it became less slashy and more just interaction. There's not much action, which is unusual for my stories, but there is, as per usual for my writing, a twist at the end that I hope comes as a surprise to everyone. Unbeta'd. I'm not too fond of my portrayal of Helen Magnus. This is my first Sanctuary fic, so I apologize. **

**Sanctuary:**

**Much Ado…**

"Helen!"

The disembodied voice shocked her from… wherever her mind had been drifting. Helen Magnus spun around, locating the sound of the voice that she knew too well, yet didn't bring any sense of comfort. No, that voice usually meant all hell was about to break loose. As her eyes scanned her surroundings, she realized she had no clue where she was. It was dark—almost black—and it felt narrow judging by the echo of her own breath. The clammy feeling suggested she was underground. There was no draft, so it was very likely they were sealed inside. She toed her foot forward and it bumped into something solid. Not near hard enough to be stone or a wall. It was solid, yet somewhat soft, giving just a little if she pushed harder. She crouched down with her hands out, feeling until they bumped into the solid object—a body. Still warm. Suddenly a blinding light filled her vision, obscuring anything she could have seen.

"Helen! There you are!" The voice was closer now, likely the one holding the light that was currently burning her eyes. She brought a hand up to shield them from the light while trying to look around it at the owner.

"Nikola? What—?"

"No time. We need to keep moving before—You're bleeding." The light was lowered, forcing her eyes to refocus again.

Magnus flinched away from a warm hand on her cheek, urging her to tilt her head up. She swatted his hand away and stood, brushing herself off. "I'm fine." She insisted. Her hand brushed over a torch hooked to her belt which she promptly unclipped it, clicking it on so she could observe her surroundings.

"Look at me." Nikola Tesla demanded, repositioning his hand under her jaw to hold her head steady. Once again, that blinding light was in her eyes. The pain was almost searing. Like fire erupting in the back of her mind. Her eyes squeezed shut and she lifted a hand to push the light away, but Nikola caught her wrist. However, he did lower the light enough so it wasn't directly blinding her. This seemed to help, if only a little.

She was growing increasingly irritated with his constant 'hands on' attention. She didn't trust this man as far as she could throw him, so when did he earn the privilege to be so demanding and physical with her? With that in mind, she struggled against both grips he had on her, finally managing to shove him back a few feet, stepping away. But the next thing she knew, she was on the ground after the world spun around her.

"There, are you happy?" Tesla asked, one hand resting on his hip as it jutted out to the side a bit. The other was folded under his chin, looking her crumpled form over as if appraising a piece of artwork that he didn't quite approve of. "Doctors are _always_ the worst patience." The vampire rolled his eyes with a heavy sigh then extended a hand to her. "I think you have a concussion."

Magnus looked at his hand for a beat then stood on her own, ignoring his offered help. She swayed briefly before finding purchase against the wall. It felt rough. So, they weren't inside a man made building. It was some sort of tunnel or cave perhaps?

There was another heavy sigh, this one sounding exasperated. "Do you know your name? Age? Well, I should ask for your address but…"

"Helen Magnus. And you should never ask a woman her age." She retorted without a second thought. Though, they both knew it was no secret. "I'm currently the head of the Sanctuary network. Satisfied?"

"For now." Tesla shrugged, planting that hand back on his hip after it was left hanging in the air. He eyed the bloody gash on her temple with a mix of emotions that Magnus almost couldn't place. Absently, Helen thought, Will would have had a field day analyzing that single glance. Speaking of Will, she found herself wondering why he wasn't here and where here really was. Last she recalled, they were discussing… something. Oh, what was it? Henry had been there too. It was so blurry. She could see the room, but it was as if the memory's audio was muted. Their lips were moving, but she couldn't hear anything. Not even her own replies to what they were saying. A sudden pressure on her shoulder made her jump, blinking rapidly. Tesla's face swam back into view.

"Say _something_ so I know you heard me." Tesla urged. He'd obviously been saying something, but her mind had wandered and she'd tuned him out completely.

Magnus cleared her throat, blinking rapidly. "Right." She agreed randomly, hoping it was the answer he was looking for, because there was no way she would admit that he just might be right about her condition. Medical knowledge was her specialty. He had no right to—No. She needed to focus.

"Right? That's not the kind of answer I was expecting. But hey, who am I to argue." He smirked arrogantly and gently steered her forward by the shoulder. "The sooner we're out of here, the sooner we can get you to _tall, dark, and hairy_ for a checkup."

Her immediate response to that was to ask where exactly 'here' was, but she didn't want to let on just how weakened she was right now. She couldn't show such weakness in front of someone who could turn on her any second now. So, she remained quiet for the time being. She really hated to admit that Will was often right about Tesla, even if she couldn't quite tell the vampiric genius 'no' when he asked for her assistance. She couldn't explain it, and quite frankly, she didn't want to try. If she looked too deeply into it, she might find something she didn't want to find.

"Helen. I know how hard it might be for most to keep up with my intellectual level in a conversation, but I had honestly thought you could at least sprint behind me enough to follow what I'm saying. Don't tell me you've spent so long dumbing things down for Doctor Expendable that you've fallen to his level. Oh Helen. That would be just," He sucked in a feigned breath of despair. "tragic."

"Perhaps if you quit running your mouth and started using your _superior intellect_ to find us a way out, I might find a compelling reason to pay attention." She shot right back.

Nikola made a sound in the back of his throat, cross between a hum and a purr. "There's the Helen Magnus I know and love. But!" He held up a finger, indicating a single point. "We don't need to 'find' a way out, we simply need to backtrack. Which way did you come in?"

"I…" Helen spun around, looking down the underground corridors. "I'm just a bit disoriented." She tried to play it off. Her slightly-more-irritable-than-normal attitude towards him was likely partially due to the concussion, while also partly due to the fact that she felt so vulnerable without any memory of the entire day. She could just hear Will telling her not to trust a word he says, despite how sincere he seems.

"That," He clapped her on the shoulder. "would be the concussion talking. Come along." Tesla began ushering her down the hall again. They seemed to walk for miles, but it was likely not as long as it felt. Her mind continued to wander in the stretching silence until she stumbled. A pair of strong arms kept her from meeting the ground and righted her.

"Easy now…"

"You've no idea where we're headed, do you?" Helen accused, pulling away despite how comforting that hold felt. Right now, all she wanted was to rest, so the allure of those arms was like a poison, rapidly taking over her mind and altering her better judgment. With each passing second it was harder to resist just curling up and closing her eyes, allowing darkness to take her.

"Of course not. I've been trapped down here for days. You were supposed to have some _genius_ plan cooked up by the mongrel to map the tunnels so _you_ could rescue _me_."

Magnus' features fell along with hear heart accompanied with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach that didn't help the nausea any. She didn't remember any of this. It wasn't for a lack of trying, either. The harder she thought about it, the harder it was to keep the pull of darkness at bay until she lost the battle and everything went black.

**OoOoOoOoO**

A sharp scent pulled her from the recesses of her mind and back into the painful reality. Her body jerked and she tried to sit up quickly, but a hand on her shoulder kept her still. Her eyes blinked rapidly to clear the disorientation, but it stubbornly remained. She tried to struggle, but as her eyes adjusted to the dim torchlight bouncing off the walls, Tesla's worried and worn features came into view.

"So good of you to carry smelling salts with you." He commented dryly and capped the small vial, dropping it back into her pack. "If indeed you do have a concussion—which the evidence is piling up to prove the theory—I do believe you should not be sleeping. How am I doing so far?" Tesla asked with a quirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. Carefully, he helped her sit up and propped her back against the wall, handing her a canteen of water.

"I've been thinking… The trek into this hellhole took all of… what? Twenty minutes, maybe? We should be out by now."

"What are you suggesting?" Magnus asked, screwing the cap back on the bottle and resting her head against the wall.

"Well, it stands to reason that if everyone who's come down here couldn't find their way out… and there's only one tunnel… It's less likely that they got lost. Rather, they were prevented from leaving." He raised an eyebrow, giving her a chance to contemplate this.

Magnus shifted, her features showing mild realization. "You think we're going about this the wrong way." It was a statement more than a question.

"Precisely." Nikola grinned.

"If something is preventing us from leaving, we should venture deeper into the tunnel and find it."

"There are only two viable paths to take. We could walk endlessly and get nowhere or turn back and venture deeper into the lair to find whatever's on the other end." The vampire halfling was almost looking fondly at Magnus when her expression showed she was following his train of thought.

"It's a long shot, Nikola." She said and began to struggle to her feet. Tesla grasped her elbow and assisted her, even steadying her until she stopped teetering. "Alright." She nodded.

"Tally-ho." He teased, feigning an accent and pointing down the tunnel. Earning him an eye-roll from Helen.

**OoOoO**

After several minutes of silence, Tesla piped up, "You know, if you didn't have a concussion, I wouldn't mind taking the long way out with you at my side."

"Really, Nikola?" Disbelief and irritation was evident in her voice, but there was something else; A hint of amusement. "Honestly…" She chided.

A hiss echoed down the tunnel silencing both of them. Nikola held out an arm to keep Magnus from walking any further and put himself protectively in front of her. Tipping his head down slightly, he lifted it with changed features. Dark eyes, a mouth full of fangs, and long claws extended from his fingers.

From the shadows leapt a small creature, comparable in size to a large dog, with fins on its back, resembling some form of toad crossed with a fish. However, rather than attack them, the small abnormal lurched past them, hopping as quickly as it could down the corridor. Helen and Tesla exchanged slightly bemused glances before shrugging off the oddity. Tesla released his vampiric features, fading back to his human appearance.

"Well." The vampire arched an eyebrow, giving the empty corridor another glance, just to ensure the little creature didn't decide it was hungry and double back.

"Speechless. I rather like that quality on you, Nikola." Helen quipped as she pressed forward. She could hear a gentle humming from further up ahead. She was even quite certain she could see a faint glow around the bend. They had to be close.

"Sticks and stones, my dear." He replied, following suit and helping her along. "There's an energy source close by." He informed, matter-of-factly.

"Very astute of you. I do believe you're losing your touch." Their banter was a comfort zone for both of them. If they were bickering, they weren't worrying about the obvious perils that lay in wait or the gravity of Helen's condition. She was holding up fine for now, but it didn't take long for a concussion to go from bad to worse. And from there, Helen's longevity wouldn't matter.

It took only a few more feet before the heavy stench hit them like a solid wall and assaulted their senses. It was the smell of death and decay. An unprejudice force of nature, taking the young and the old, the healthy and the sick. With the nausea from her concussion, it was all Helen could do not to succumb to the rancid stench of rotting flesh.

Something was covering her mouth, suddenly, causing her to struggle and gasp for a breath. However, she found she could freely breathe. On top of that, there was a calming voice telling her to relax. With her wits about her once more, she realized the vampire had covered her mouth with a cloth to filter out some of the horrid smell. She would be grateful if she weren't still wary of him. She lifted her own hand to hold the cloth to her face, muttering her thanks under her breath. She could just hear the smile on his face, though he said not a word.

As they approached the bend, she was certain now that it was light. Dim and yellow, but still light. But as the light became more evident, so did the smell. Even the cloth over her nose and mouth wasn't filtering it out, but she feared how much worse it would be without the simple fabric.

Rounding the corner, she saw the reason for the unholy odor. "Bloody hell…"

"Indeed." Tesla agreed as his eyes washed over the trove of dead bodies. Some were so far gone it was hard to distinguish whether they ever were humanoid or not. But it was quite obvious that they ranged from just about any race one could possibly imagine. This macabre scene laid out a carpet of rotting flesh and bone around a brightly glowing, loudly humming machine. It was no more than four feet tall, made of buffed golden stone topped with a glowing dome of amber. There was no visible control panel, but there did seem to be a withdrawn interface. Movement in the corner of his eye caught the vampire's attention. Helen had extended a hand towards it, as if being lured. He examined her dazed features as she stared at the object, taking a step forward.

"Helen." His tone was cautious. When she didn't reply, he reached out and snatched her wrist. The contact made the immortal woman jump, dragging her back to her senses.

"I'm… sorry. It's just…"

"Magnetic? Yeah. It's giving off a faint magnetic pull. Look around you. I'm sure that's what every one of these abnormals felt just before…" He let his thought trail off because the rest didn't need saying.

"Yes. Yes, of course." Magnus shook her head to clear her thoughts, but found that to be a very bad idea as a wave of nausea and debilitating pain swept over her. Her vision blurred and she found herself in his arms once more.

"Easy does it." Nikola walked her to the wall and gently helped her brace herself against it before he warily progressed towards the device. Using his own electromagnetism, he pushed the field back, neutralizing it. As he did so, the access point slid free of its locking mechanism and displayed a console. "Ok. Now what?" He asked, examining the device; poking at a few keys. His eyes darted back and forth as if reading unseen text while his fingers were in contact with the keys. A smile slowly curled up his face. "Oh, Helen…" He breathed, excitedly. Suddenly jerking his fingers away from the keys, his eyes stilled and focused back on the world before him.

"It's a prison. Like a Roach Motel." Tesla's face nearly lit up with his epiphany. "Oh… This is magnificent! Think of it like… walking through a river of mud. Entering the tunnel, you're walking with the current, so it pushes you inside with ease. However, turn around and try to leave, and you're walking against a torrent of thick mud impeding your progress. With the mud at your back, pushing you along, your trip takes a mere ten minutes. Moving against that vicious current—"

Magnus cut in. "The current would prevent you from moving very fast at all. That ten minute trip would take hours or better. Putting strain on your body with every step. So—"

"So, the two of us, given our longevity, could have made it out eventually had we continued pressing on." Tesla continued with a wide smile.

"A normal human lifespan would never make it." Helen added, her face falling a bit. This was a death trap. They needed to figure out how to deactivate it.

"But you're not at your best." Nikola's fingertips brushed her hair away from her temple, examining the wound again. "We need to find an alternative means of escape."

Helen's first instinct in this time of pain and disorientation was to close her eyes and just relax into the gentle touch, however, sluggishly, her common sense takes over and she pulls away from his touch, shooting him a look. "Nikola—"

"My intentions were completely pure, I assure you." Argued the vampire before she could even voice her objection fully.

"Nothing about you is pure."

Aghast, Nikola covered his chest as if he'd been shot, just short of staggering. "Helen, I'm offended. You truly think so low of me? You only keep me around for my services." The Serbian scientist nearly pouted.

"Yes." She snapped back immediately, ignoring the pout.

The grin on Tesla's face was a foreboding sign. She'd just unwittingly fallen into some little word trap of his. "Oh, you naughty thing, you." He purred, that grin bloomed into a full, beaming smile.

"You are taking advantage of my injured state just so you can make lewd suggestions. I hardly see that as fair." Fatigue was beginning to wear in on her tone, leaving her sounding exhausted.

The vampire settled his fingers back on the keys, still grinning smugly. His eyes darted back and forth before he closed them and took a deep breath. "There should be some sort of shutdown command here somewhere." He muttered absentmindedly. Several long moments passed in silence. Helen almost wondered if maybe he'd fallen asleep standing there like that, but no sooner had she decided to speak did the machine suddenly power down. "There. See? Genius." He grinned arrogantly and reached a hand out to Helen. "Shall we depart, m'lady?"

Were she able to stand on her own, she would have loved to ignore his assistance and walk past him. However, she did require his support, so she begrudgingly took his hand and allowed him to cradle her close as they walked. Things were looking up, but the ten minute walk was ten minutes too long. Helen went from stumbling, to heavily leaning, to nearly dragging in the span of five minutes.

"We're almost there. Where's the Helen Magnus I know and love? She wouldn't let a simple concussion get her down." The vampire harassed, trying to elicit a fighting reaction from the fading immortal. To is dismay, he was rewarded with the full weight of Helen's body against his. Quick to react, he wrapped both arms around her and pulled her into his arms. Brushing her hair out of her eyes revealed they were closed. The woman was unconscious in his arms, but still breathing. She needed medical attention quickly. Pulling her into a bridal-style hold, Tesla picked up his pace.

**OoOoOoOoO**

Magnus woke in the infirmary back in her Sanctuary. She was attached to several monitors that beeped and displayed signs of good health. She found herself staring up into the bright white lights for several moments before bringing a hand to her forehead. There was a gentle gauss wrapped around her head, but there wasn't much pain. The IV in her arm made sure of that. She must have made enough noise in her rousing for she heard the door open and close, finding herself face to face with the warm faces of Henry Foss and Will Zimmerman.

"How're you feelin' doc?" Henry spoke first, his voice attempted to conceal his worry, but he did it poorly. It was endearing how he pulled a strong front for her sake. But it was entirely unnecessary. Will, however, looked more calculating. He was deducing his own assessment of her condition.

To her surprise, the first words out of her mouth were not an answer nor an apology for worrying them. "Where's Nikola?" She asked, her voice raspy. She must have been out for several days to produce such an effect. She watched the boys exchange confused glances before they settled their confusion back on her. Henry's worry heightened.

"He's run off again, hasn't he?" She pressed, looking for some sort of answer.

"Did he have something to do with whatever trapped you down there?" Will asked, still calculating. His tone revealed nothing.

"What?" Her brow furrowed in frustration. "No. I went to rescue Nikola, but we both wound up prisoners of that device. I never would have made it out without him. I suppose… I owe him."

This only seemed to puzzle the two boys even further. And frankly, it was wearing on her patience. She didn't want to play this game—whatever game they were playing—she wanted answers and they were withholding information from her.

"Will." She demanded.

"Magnus," It was Will who did finally respond. "you went to those tunnels to investigate disappearing abnormals and a fluctuating power signature. We lost radio contact with you a few minutes in and began mounting a rescue attempt when you stumbled back out with a concussion. You were barely conscious. We were hoping you could tell us what happened…"

"No…" Helen shook her head, frustration almost pushing the barrier to anger, but she kept herself in check. "No. Nikola and I were trapped inside. We deactivated the device and he carried me out when I lost consciousness. You were there, Will. You had to have seen him carry me from the cave." When Will didn't show any sign of recognition of these events, she turned her eyes desperately to the HAP. "Henry?" When he shook his head, she floundered.

"You had a severe concussion when you emerged. It wouldn't be stretch to say… maybe you were delirious. Hallucinations aren't uncommon with injuries of that severity. Perhaps you only thought he was with you?" Will suggested, but for some reason, this thought didn't put her mind at ease. If she had indeed been hallucinating, why Nikola? Surely there were more suitable individuals to hallucinate about when one had a concussion. As her mind reeled to comprehend the implications behind her subconscious' choice of companionship for her hallucination, she could see in Will's eyes, he was doing the same thing. Psychoanalyzing her.

"Don't." She ordered as she sat up. The two boys had to step back as she began disconnecting herself from the medical equipment and IVs.

"Magnus—" Zimmerman barely got a protest out, but a single glance cut it short.

"I'm fine. Really. Now, I really must be back to my work. I've missed quite a bit of it, I'm afraid." A strong hand was suddenly pressing her back to the bed. Unrelenting. But it was neither of the boys before her. Before she could argue or struggle, a growling voice from behind her identified the owner of the hand.

"Stay. Sleep." The voice grunted forcefully, leaving no room for argument. "You are not fully recovered. You will rest." Bigfoot really was a force to be reckoned with when it came to the wellbeing of the little band of friends and work partners. All Helen could do was stare up at the furry face of her good friend and smile softly. Just this once, she'd take a break. Take a break and reflect on the events that unfolded in that underground prison. She was still contemplating this as Bigfoot ushered the other two out of the medical room and dimmed the lights for her. Letting her reflect in peace. Reflect on a single question that she really wasn't sure she wanted answered; Why Nikola Tesla?

**End**


End file.
